Betta plan

[Twinbot]

Okay, four or five female bettas in a five gallon Marineland hex tank ... good or bad idea?

 

[fishRmylife]

I think they will be fine, as long as your sure they arent males. j/k. Ive never kept any females, and I doubt they will get very big, so as along as your filtration system is working well, you should be ok. What kind of equipment do you have?

 

[Twinbot]

Should I decide to do this, Walmart has a 5g Hex tank made my Marineland for $29. It uses the bio-wheel system similar to the Eclipse hood system.

 

[fishRmylife]

i dont see why not, just make sure you cycle the tank before you put any fish in it

 

[Antwan]

Bettas could live in toilets. I would'nt even bother with a filter. Just do frequent water changes. You could probably sqeeze a few more in their too.

 

[Anike]

Hey...I wouldn't try to squeeze more than the 4-5 in a 5g. I think that's rather dangerous because female bettas don't always get along and with a pecking order, 5g doesn't seem to be very much room for swimming away and hiding for that amount of bettas. I'll be the first to admit I'm a fishkeeping newbie, but from what I've gathered so far, maybe it's not the greatest of ideas. As much as there's a chance the girls may all get along, I still think there's likely to be a pretty aggressive female or two that could bring down the quality of life for all the inhabitants in that small a tank.

 

[Super_Fishy]

That's kinda small for them. Why do most people always insist on the one inch of fish per gallon rule, but they make it seem as if bettas are the exception? Fish need room to swim... I'd say a 10g would be better for them.

 

[Antwan]

Naw, believe me, several bettas could be good for that tank, some shrimp too. 1 in:1 gal rule is good for newbies with peaceful fish and all that, but its pretty obvious when you can't use it.

 

[catfishmike]

i would go with four just to be on the safe side.as mentioned sometimes females will establish a pecking order and the dominant female will be just as rough as a male

 

[Super_Fishy]

Originally posted by Antwan
Bettas could live in toilets. I would'nt even bother with a filter. Just do frequent water changes. You could probably sqeeze a few more in their too.


Naw, believe me, several bettas could be good for that tank, some shrimp too. 1 in:1 gal rule is good for newbies with peaceful fish and all that, but its pretty obvious when you can't use it.

IMO, I still think that's small for them. I personally hate the 1" per fish rule myself, because it favors small fish, severely cramps larger fishes. If you're trying in insinuate that I'm a newbie at fish keeping, just remember, you said it yourself that "bettas could live in toilets". An experienced aquarist will always consider the well being of their fishes, and would NEVER even consider that! Without a filter, the water would go stale fast, and probably smell. Poor bettas, they are deffinately the most abused fishes in the world. Don't even get me started with "betta vision" crap.

 

[Antwan]

The 1 in.:1 gal. rule work with fish up to 3 in. After that, a 4 in fish require 5+ gallons, a 6 in. fish requires 10+ gal., and so on. And I was using that "bettas could live in toilets" as a joke. I was just pointing out that bettas are very, very hardy fish. I didn't mean that he could throw bettas in the toilet if he wanted to, God no, I'm just saying that a filter isn't absolutely necessary. Maybe I shoudn't joke around so much. He could just filter about 1/3 water out every week if he wanted to. Most of the fish bowl nation does that with their bettas/goldfish. But I do agree that bettas shouldn't be kept in 8 oz. cups their whole life.

And I apologize, I wasn't implying that you're a newbie, I wouldn't know that. My post just happen to be in the wrong order.

 

[Super_Fishy]

Antwan

Don't worry about it, I usually over-react sometimes when it comes to bettas.... I kinda of figured it was a joke, but it just struck a nerve. I should be the one apologizing for over-reacting....*celebrate

 

[Twinbot]

No, I should be the one apologizing for asking a question that caused the destruction of the civilized world.

I'll just stick with four small units in a 5 hex, and leave it at that. Thanks for all of your highly, passionate responses.

 

[tramca]

I have 4 females and 1 male in 10 gal.

They try for some sort of pecking order now and then but generally get along. They have plenty of places to hide.